His Majesty’s Hit With Slapstick, Review of ‘The Play That Goes Wrong’

His Majesty’s Theatre is renowned for presenting Australia’s finest operas and orchestras. Step inside and there’s no doubt that this is a place of elegance and class. However, for the next two weeks, Shakespeare plays and ballets aside, the theatre has been smacked with a bit of comic relief. The Play That Goes Wrong, created by the Mischief Theatre Company from the United Kingdom, has been brought to Australia for the very first time this year.

The play introduces us to the ‘Cornely Polytechnic Drama Society’ – a bunch of amateuar actors, along with their technician, who are attempting to put on a play: ‘The Murder at Haversham Manor.’ But as the title of this show suggests, everything imaginably possible goes wrong. Lost dogs, missing props, Duran Duran outbreaks and falling sets are only the beginning of their problems.

With a brilliant cast behind these melodramatic fools, including Logie Award winner Brooke Satchwell, this team certainly bring the play to life.

Some might find the humour cringey, while others will find themselves wiping away tears of laughter. It’s a strange sight to see some of Perth’s most glamourous, dressed to the teeth, snorting from uncontrollable laughter. Everyone’s humour is different, and while some may not enjoy this Stooges-esque comedy, others will adore it.

While everything goes horribly wrong in the show, the timing and construction makes everything wondefully right. Clearly, a considerable amount of effort has been implemented to make sure these mishaps are flawless. The set also has some sneaky tricks and magic illusions up its sleeve that leave the audience in astonishment but in shock at times too.

Undoubtedly funny, definitely unpredictable, who knew that a play of this style would be rolling into one of our most renouned theatres.

If you would like some comic relief, then this slapstick is for you – but hurry, it will only be sticking around ’till the middle of June!